PHM-Exch> Systems Research Symposium: Statement from the People's Health Movement (PHM)

[Claudio Schuftan]

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*Statement from the People's Health Movement (PHM*)



We welcome the 1st Health Systems Research Symposium and the rich
presentations of research herein. But we would like to raise a number of
issues and suggestions for the future.



1. Some areas of relative neglect that may be rectified in the next
Symposium are:

a.

the role of the health system in promoting primary health care, including
the

involvement of communities and intersectoral action (noting WHO's own
definition of the health system, to wit, “all the activities whose primary
purpose is to promote, restore or maintain health.”);

b.

the place of people and participatory research in the field of health
systems research;

c.

the challenge of achieving equity in balance with universal coverage of
basic

services;

d.

the role and importance of public financing and the interrelationship of
public

financing and insurance. We detect a tacit approval for the expansion of
private financing

and insurance models.



2. We feel that while the importance of political and ideological factors
were mentioned several times, more discussion could be had to discuss and
determine the political, normative and ideological views of the community of
health systems researchers. This is important, because the community needs
to engage in campaigning for health systems strengthening, as well as
conducting research. Health systems policy should be informed by research;
but it needs to be shaped by normative principles and values first.



3. The Research Community is heavily influenced by the University/Academic
context and the publishing industry. But there has been inadequate
discussion about the way the HSR is shaped by these broader forces. In
short, no discussion about the Political Economy of HSR and the biases in
the Research Agenda that exist.



4. We must not tolerate the Myth of scarce resources. This requires us to
give Equal focus and emphasis on the structural and macro-economic context
of Health Systems.



*Signed on the 18th of November 2010 in Montreux, Switzerland by 22 PHM
members attending the Symposium.*
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